Twisted Logic
by Skatinggirl2011
Summary: Marnie Garcia finds herself questioning her sanity and her own self. Can Bruce Wayne keep her from sinking back into the life she gave up, or will she be pushed over the edge by an old friend.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! So I took a little break from writing to finish out the school year without any distractions, and then I just kind of hit a writer's block for two of my stories, but out of that came a new idea for a story that I intend to carry out till the very end! So without further ado: the story!**

**Disclaimer: I really only own Marnie, the plot, and anything else you don't recognize. Everything else's is part of the DC universe and whatnot.**

Marnie Garcia stared at herself in the green room mirror. It had been another successful show; everything went without a glitch- except for the occasional toe-stub or scrape that happened back-stage- but those always happened. She was starting to get used to this routine. It was a nice, simple, predictable routine that had taken her a while to get used to: wake up, get dressed, head down to the theater, relax, get ready, perform, and head home- maybe throwing in a couple of small parties into the mix. Her cast felt like her family now after the countless hours they'd spent together rehearsing and performing. When she was younger, she would've never pictured herself living a simple-or as she used to call it: boring- life and actually enjoying every minute of it. It was weird to think that after so long, it'd all be over in two weeks, and they'd be shoved out to look for another play or musical to audition for.

Of course, however, sometimes it took a tool on sleep. She was tired; she hadn't been sleeping well for the past couple of nights, and the dark circles that appeared as she wiped the stage makeup off just reaffirmed that fact. Something had been keeping her up, though besides being so wired from the performance high she got, she wasn't entirely sure what it was. Marnie sighed and took one last look in the mirror, running her fingers through her long, untidy hair in an attempt to smooth it out.

There was a knock at the door that pulled Marnie from her thoughts and back to reality. "It's open," she yelled over her shoulder as she walked over to the back of the room to get her bag and her hat.

"Someone said I might find you back here."

Marnie turned around, smiling, and dropped her bag in surprise at the sight of her close friend. "Bruce!" she squealed with excitement as she ran over and hugged him. "I can't believe you came! I thought you didn't like going to these types of things."

"I don't," he paused and gave her the flowers he'd been holding, "I had nothing else to do. It was either this or paperwork. And I suppose I wanted to support you," He laughed and ruffled her hair knowing she hated when people did that.

"Oh gee, thanks," Marnie muttered sarcastically as she tried to punch Bruce in the arm, which he easily dodged. She glared at him and put on her hat over her messy hair. Bruce remembered her when she was stuck in her teenage rebellion stage, and would've never thought theater would interest her.

"What's with the fedora? Are you trying to embody Indiana Jones?" He was acting like an older brother would with a younger sibling. Marnie just rolled her eyes and walked away from him to grab her bag. She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction he was looking for by her reacting to the comment. She slung her messenger bag over her shoulder and walked out of the green room with Bruce at her side.

"I'm being the bigger person, so I'm not going to say anything."

As they got to the main area where everyone usually met, they found that all the people who had been there were outside, clearly watching something intently. From what Marnie could see, a lot of the people had worried and confused looks on their faces. "What's going on out there?" she asked Bruce. He shrugged, barely taking his attention from what was happening.

"C'mon, there's another way to the street," he said. He began to run towards the hallway to their left with Marnie close behind him. They rounded another corner to another hallway with a door at the end of it that led to the alleyway.

"How'd you know where to go?" Marnie asked, stumbling out the door after him into the cool, fall air. He just shrugged again, still not really paying attention to her. They jogged out to the sidewalk to see what was going on. The sounds of guns going off and sirens in the distance cracked through the night. A couple blocks down the road, an orange glow reflected off some of the buildings and lit up the night sky. The sirens came closer, and the fire trucks raced down the street towards the chaos.

"Marnie!" a familiar voice called out. Marnie saw one of her fellow cast members motioning for her to come over. She looked back at Bruce, whose face was completely void of emotion.

"Marnie, I've got to head off. I'll see you later," Bruce said, finally looking at her. She nodded, and he was gone. By now, she was used to him running off somewhere at night. She never questioned him about it, but she was always curious as to what he was doing.

Marnie sighed and pushed her way through the crowd to get to her cast member. "Jim! Do you know what's going on?" she yelled above the noise as she reached the tall, slightly tanned guy standing closest to the street. His usual Boston Red Socks hat was slightly askew, showing off some of his shaggy brown hair.

"No, I was hoping you would."

"Nope, I just got here, I've been in the green room the whole time."

Jim gave her a suspicious look. "With Bruce?" He didn't really like Bruce Wayne. He thought he was too cocky and full of himself; Jim could never understand why Marnie would be friends with him- besides the fact that her adoptive father was the mayor, which put her in the same crowd with Bruce. She seemed to avoid the "rich" crowd all the time, only interacting with them when her parents made her go to dinner with them; Bruce seemed to be the exception to that, and lately she'd been spending a lot of time with him.

"Geez Jim, it's not what you think. We're just friends!" Jim looked at her with a disapproving look. He'd always suspected there was something more between them, so he kept trying to push her away from Bruce. There was something besides his personality Jim never liked. Marnie rolled her eyes and continued, "Besides, he came in as I was leaving. It just took me awhile to get changed and everything."

"Still not getting much sleep?" he asked.

Marnie nodded and sighed. "Nope. Something's been keeping me up. I have absolutely no clue what it is, but it's seriously getting annoying. I just lay there in bed staring at the ceiling, waiting to fall asleep." Jim was the only one who knew about her sleepless nights for some reason. One day after the first few restless nights, he just knew. He had always been good at reading people.

"Well, take some benadryl or something."

Marnie laughed. "I'm actually considering that at this point." She looked around at everything, becoming uneasy. "Well, I guess I should start headed home, I didn't take my car today so I have to walk-"

"That's real smart to walk around this late at night," he commented.

"Yeah, well, I can handle myself." Marnie rolled her eyes. She hated when people assumed she was the stereotypical woman who couldn't defend herself. She held her own in a fight when she was younger and was actually the one who would initiate them.

Jim laughed, not really believing her. "I can give you a ride," he offered. "It'll get you back home faster."

Marnie thought about it for a moment, and then nodded. "I suppose. I'm feeling kind of lazy tonight." She finally gave him a genuine smile for the first time since they'd started their conversation. They walked side-by-side into the nearby parking garage where Jim kept his car. It was almost empty since most of the places around the theater had been closed for over an hour, and a lot of the people outside still watching the accident had parked somewhere else.

They came up to Jim's old, beat up Toyota that he was always so proud of since it was the first car he'd actually paid for. Still, Marnie couldn't see why he was proud of it when the car looked like it was going to fall apart at any minute. There were a couple of minor dents on the side of the car, and one major one on the back bumper; also, from what it looked like, there were a couple of holes that appeared to be from bullets, but Jim always assured her those were from the previous owner and that she'd be safe riding with him.

"Well, you can get in you know. But if you want to just stand there, that's fine too," Jim commented as he climbed into the driver's seat. Marnie rolled her eyes and tried to open the door, only to find that it was locked.

"Ha-ha, you're so funny. Open up the door!" she yelled. "C'mon Jim…" She could hear Jim laughing as he leaned over and unlocked her door. "Thanks." Marnie climbed in and smiled. "I have absolutely no clue why I'm still friends with you."

"Because you'd feel so lost without my friendly abuse."

They pulled out of the parking garage and drove in the opposite direction of the confusion that was still going on. The streets had cleared and were virtually empty now- since the people around were still off the roads, paying attention to the burning building-, which always made Jim happy since he didn't have to wait.

Marnie smiled as they sped down the road, feeling that old, familiar rush and excitement that could only be brought on by speeding- a feeling she'd almost forgotten.

"Where's your apartment?" Jim asked, smiling.

"It's right before the main bridge that leads into the Narrows. It's going to be the first housing complex to the right of the bridge."

He nodded, knowing exactly where that was, even though he couldn't believe she lived in a relatively dangerous area. He turned on his CD player- which blasted the Smiths. Marnie was a bit taken aback that he actually listened to that kind of music; she'd always imagined that he'd like classic rock or something, not indie- but she didn't complain. The Smiths had grown on her over the past couple of years.

All the way to the apartment, Jim tapped his fingers along with the drums on the steering wheel, and Marnie hummed along with the songs she was somewhat familiar with as she stared out the window at the city passing by.

Jim put the car in park when they arrived at Marnie's apartment complex, and she slid out of the car. She waved to him as she shut the door behind her. He waved back and then sped off over the bridge and into the narrows. Marnie sighed and headed inside the somewhat clean complex, climbing up several flights of stairs before actually reaching her floor. Almost out of habit, she grabbed the key from her bag, kicked the door twice, turned the key into the hole, and stepped into her apartment, closing and locking the door behind her.

The apartment was an average sized one: one bedroom, one bathroom, and a kitchen/living area. It was the perfect size for just one person, and it was Marnie's sanctuary. Pictures from the past and present were all around, as well as posters from her favorite movies and bands. It was a little untidy, which was typical for Marnie, seeing as she was never one to organize things. It was too much of a hassle, and she figured if she needed something, she'd find it eventually.

An old upright piano was up against the wall of the living room with sheet music scattered all around it. The television was on the opposite side of the room with a fluffy, green chair a couple feet away from it.

Marnie hung up her keys and her bag on the door handle and walked into the kitchen to get something to eat since she hadn't eaten since lunch. There was no eating in costume, so she wasn't able to sneak a few bites of food during the show; needless to say, she was starving. She pulled out some fruit and left over pizza from the refrigerator and put everything on a plate. She, then, turned on the television as she began to eat on the counter that looked out into the living room.

"_Arkham Asylum has just confirmed that the Joker has, indeed, broken out, which confirms the police's suspicion that the explosion at a local bank was the work of the infamous criminal who'd caused so much destruction two years ago. Chief Commissioner Gordon urges anyone who may have spotted him or seen any suspicious activity to report it, and he urges everyone to stay safe and take any safety precautions they feel necessary… In other news, super model Tyra Banks has decided to launch-" _

_Typical._ Marnie thought. _Leave it to the news to report something important for once but then drop it for a celebrity. _She changed the channel to Nickelodeon, which was playing Jimmy Neutron. Marnie always thought that when in doubt, turn to cartoons- they're always entertaining. The news about the Joker didn't really surprise her or make her anxious. It was only a matter of time before he escaped- it was bound to happen sooner or later. The last time he was supposedly causing chaos, she'd been out of the country, studying music; so she'd never really experienced that feeling of fear he caused.

Of course, she'd heard of him while she was away, but she had her doubts on how destructive one man could be and just figured people were exaggerating like they always did. Of course, she could just be naïve, and she didn't rule that out, but she figured she'd be safe. She was, at this point, not of any importance. Sure, she was the mayor's adopted daughter, but besides that, she was a nobody- just a stage actress whom nobody really paid attention to anymore. She couldn't possibly be any use whatsoever.

Marnie finished eating and put the remainders back in the refrigerator. After she rinsed off her plate, she did her normal routine of getting ready for bed, but this time she threw benadryl into the mix. Before she knew it, she was out like a light.

**So that's where I'm going to leave it for now. I know it wasn't super eventful, but it gives you an idea about the main character. I've already started on the next chapter, so I'm hoping it'll be out super soon, but I'm not going to promise anything since I'm working on a whole bunch of college stuff. Anyways, let me know what you think, I like hearing peoples' two cents on things. Just no flames please.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello my fellow readers! First off, I would like to thank Imogen-xOx and Rachel for their reviews; you guys made me super happy and excited! I love reviews! Also I would like to say thanks to Tiger Uchiha Alchemest, , Queen-Book_Luver999, and Extraho for adding my story to your story alerts! Also, I'm sorry it took me a long time to get this chapter out. It's been a busy first few weeks of school, but hopefully things will swing back to normal soon enough. Anyways, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Marnie awoke to the sound of her phone ringing at eleven in the morning. Having been in a deep sleep, she groaned in frustration and rolled lazily out of bed, her eyes still sealed shut. She stumbled around to the opposite side of her room, and reached around the windowsill till she finally found the phone. "Hello?" Marnie mumbled into the receiver, still trying to wake herself up.

"Miss Garcia?" a women's voice asked, sounding a bit confused.

"Yeah, who's calling?" She was becoming increasingly irritated with whoever was calling her. _No, it's Mr. Miyagi. Who'd you think you were calling?_

"This is Sherry calling on behalf of your father. He wanted me to let you know about the fundraiser tonight. He's expecting you to be there-"

"Couldn't he have just called me?" Marnie started to wake up from her drugged state.

The woman ignored her question, and continued speaking, "He's expecting you to be there. The event begins at seven, don't be late, and come dressed appropriately."

"Yeah, sure," she muttered before hanging up the phone. Marnie had figured it would only be a matter of time before her father would invite her to another event seeing as it had been about a month since the last time she was asked to attend something.

It wasn't that she hated her father or anything- in fact she was far from hating him. She just hated being around superficial people who were only nice to you because you were well off, but then as soon as you were gone, they'd be talking and spreading rumors about you. Why would she want to be around people who hated her when she could just be around friends; but she couldn't blow off her dad, especially not after all she had put him through.

First off, he'd adopted her and taken care of her throughout everything; he'd even kept her from being sent to jail. When she was younger, she never really appreciated all that he did for her; she would always do things just to defy her dad, and had always caused trouble for him. Marnie would break the law just to see if she would get caught, and the one time she did, her dad took care of everything. However, that had been the last straw, and her family sent her to boarding school for a while in order to straighten her out.

"_What the hell were you thinking, Marnie?" Anthony Garcia yelled as he turned off the news. He was trying to understand what possessed Marnie to burn down a building- which, in turn, killed the owner- but he couldn't come up with anything. He looked over at his daughter who had sitting silently in his office; she looked down at her hands to avoid his scrutinizing eyes_

_Anthony sighed and sat back down in the chair behind his desk, his hands covering his face. He was at a loss of what to do. Of course he would be able to make this whole ordeal come out looking like an accident, but what could he do to help her? She was heading down the wrong path, and he was trying his best to turn her around. _

_Obviously, there was something wrong with her- whether it was her extreme need to rebel or if he had done something wrong when he raised her as a child- he didn't know. "What did I do to deserve this, Marnie? Are you unhappy with me? Did I lead you to do this?"_

_Marnie finally looked up at him, with tears in her eyes. "No, no! Not at all!" She immediately became quiet again and looked back down at her hands, mentally smacking herself for even talking to him. She had been so adamant on not saying anything during the meeting; she knew he would get her out of trouble like he always had, but she wouldn't say one word to him. He wouldn't get an answer from her. It was simple: in and out; listen to his lecture and then head back out into the Narrows to find someone to take her anger out on. However, now that she had opened her mouth, that didn't seem like a possibility._

"_We then, care to explain what happened?" He was looking directly at her now, his eyes filled with distress._

Shit, Marnie. Look what you did! _"It was an accident, I swear! I didn't mean to kill him. Things just… things just got out of hand." The tears started to fall from her eyes. She was actually telling the truth for once, and it was killing her._

"_What do you mean things got out of hand?"_

_Marnie took a deep breath to calm down. Normally on things like this, she never looked back and reflected; she just moved on and forgot about it. _Don't tell him, Marnie, it'll only make matters worse… _"Well, I had originally meant to scare him and get even, but… but I didn't realize he had been unconscious, and I thought I had it under control, but I didn't… I couldn't. I didn't know what to do; I couldn't think clearly- everything was moving so fast! I'm sorry dad. I d-d-didn't mean to kill him…" She couldn't hold it back anymore, and she broke down crying._

_Her father sat there quietly, taking everything in. "Why did you want to get even with him? What did he do to you, Marnie?" he asked after taking a few moments of silence. Marnie just shook her head, sobbing uncontrollably._

_Anthony sighed, knowing more than ever what to do to get Marnie to turn her life around. He and his wife had already talked it over before all of this, but he never thought it would actually come down to this. "Pack your things, Marnie…" he mumbled._

_She suddenly stopped crying. "What?"_

"_I said pack your things. We're sending you off to boarding school. You need to be away from Gotham for a while.-" he ducked quickly as Marnie threw a vase at the wall behind him. "Goodbye Marnie."_

Marnie shuttered as she recalled those dark teenage years. No matter how much she hated boarding school, it had given her the structure and discipline she needed to turn her life around, and that's exactly what she did.

She never thought it would be possible to turn her life around, but it happened. Sure it had been a struggle-it had even taking six months just to start seeing improvement. After two years, she was finally on the right path to a good, normal life, and just in time for college too. It had been music and theater that had saved her, as well as the positive, healthy atmosphere of the school. One of the teachers at the boarding school had introduced both to her, and it began her outlet for almost everything; it even helped her calm down when she would be shaken up.

Then of course, there was Bruce. It had been right after he made his glorious return back to Gotham when they became close friends. She had flown in from Italy, where she had been studying music, after the unexpected death of her best friend in order to attend the funeral. The news of the murder had left Marnie devastated, and almost drove her back down that dark path to avenge her friend's death, but luckily Bruce came into her life and had been able to keep her calm and rational. He had been her rock that kept her grounded, and for that she was thankful.

* * *

"So, Miss Garcia, what's this I hear about a secret, budding romance that you've developed since you've returned? Why have you been keeping all of us in the dark?"

Marnie choked on the cocktail she had been drinking out of surprise. After coughing a few times and clearing her throat, she answered, " I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. There's no 'secret romance' that I'm aware of, and I'm pretty sure I'd know if there was." She laughed off the woman's comment and continued, "Annie, you really come up with the craziest things sometimes. I surprised you still have your news column still. I'm enjoying being single and having independence, thank you very much. I don't need someone weighing me down."

The middle-aged woman was really wearing out Marnie's patience. Annie was the news and gossip columnist for _The Gotham Times_, and was always prying in on people's lives. It was like she never matured past her high school years- especially when she stirred up drama over nothing; she was infamous for that. Marnie took another sip of her drink.

From across the other side of the large ballroom, Bruce was currently ignoring the conversation he was in and looking over at Marnie, who looked distressed. A smirked played on his face as he saw whom she was talking with. He always knew she had an immense hatred for Annie, but figured he'd wait a little longer to rescue her.

"Well certainly you want to be in a relationship and get married someday, I mean, you're not getting any younger. You're what, thirty-five?"

"Annie, I'm twenty-eight. I have plenty of time, and besides, I'm not even sure if I want to marry. I'm content with my life right now and if something comes along, great, but for now I'm happy. Besides, if I marry now, I might turn out like you: an old, unhappy, gossiping hen who-"

She was cut off in the middle of her rant when Bruce finally stepped in for some damage control. "Good evening, Mrs. Lindstrom," he said, putting on the charm he was famous for and smiling. _How'd he get here so quickly?_

The scowl that had been plastered on Annie's face was immediately turned into a smile. "Oh, hello Mr. Wayne! I wasn't aware you were here."

"Well, you probably didn't look hard enough for me then." He continued to dazzle her with his smile, and wrapped an arm around Marnie's waist. "Do you mind if I steal Miss Garcia for a moment. I have someone I'd like her to meet."

"Sure, although I don't understand why you would. She's such a buzz kill." Annie commented, acting like Marnie wasn't even standing there.

Bruce could feel Marnie tense up, and decided to pull her away before Marnie totally lost it.

Smoke was practically fuming out of her ears as Bruce led her to a separate, empty office room to help her calm down. "I'm a buzz kill?" Marnie scoffed as she paced around the room. "My left pinky toe is more entertaining than she is, and it's certainly more polite!"

Bruce couldn't help but laugh. "Why your left pinky toe? Why not some other appendage?"

Marnie stopped pacing for a moment and glared over at him. "I'm in no mood for your sly comments, Bruce." She began to pace again, fidgeting with her hands.

Bruce sighed as he walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulders to stop her. "Why do you let her get to you like that? This is exactly the type of reaction she wants out of you."

She looked up into his eyes and calmed down as she admitted, "I don't know, she just annoys me I guess." Leaving it there, Marnie walked away from Bruce and went to stare out the window at the city below. Despite being known for its crime, Gotham looked deceiving peaceful from where she was standing.

* * *

"Aw Puddin', are you sure you don't want to just go back and stay in for tonight. You just came back, and its just been so awfully lonely around when you were gone…"

The Joker was sitting in the back seat next to his blonde partner-in-crime, who had been whining ever since the got into the van. He was looking out the window, wondering why he still kept her around. She was the epitome of what all the blonde jokes were about and was just too… clingy. She was helpful in a way since she'd helped him escape from Arkham twice- not that he really needed her help to do that in the first place, but all the same, she was capable of handling that much. Also, she was sometimes a fun little plaything sometimes, but he was wondering whether that was enough to keep her around. He could easily kill her- it was laughable at how easy it would be-, but he obviously hadn't gotten around to it.

The rest of the goons in the van looked at each other nervously, sensing that the Joker's temper was growing shorter and shorter with each passing minute. "Harley, Harley, Harley, I thought by now you would realize that whining gets you nowhere, especially with me," he commented in a sing-song voice as he took out his favorite pocket knife and started messing around with it. "Same with procrastinating. What's the, ah, saying? Never put off to tomorrow what you can do today, hmm?"

Harley crossed her arms over her chest, looked forward, and pouted.

"So, Jim-bo, you sure this little shindig is tonight? If we get there and it's not, I'll be highly disappointed." The Joker spun his knife around his fingers and looked at Jim through the rearview mirror at the young man sitting in the passenger seat, wearing a Boston Red Socks cap.

Slightly surprised that he was call by the right name- well, almost- he laughed to himself and answered, "Yeah boss, it's tonight. I'm sure of it."

"Good. Now take off that hat, you look ridiculous. In case you haven't noticed, we're not in Boston."

Jim nodded and took of his baseball cap, still smiling to himself. _Someone dressed as a clown is telling me that I look ridiculous._

The van made a sharp turn into an alley and stopped suddenly, causing everyone to lurch forward. The Joker growled and rubbed the side of his head as he leaned over to the driver. "Another stunt like that, kid, and you're history."

The driver stared straight forward in fear, knowing that a knife was drawing closer to his throat. "Sorry boss, but we're here."

There was a quick change in the Joker's demeanor as he leaned back in his seat, sparing the driver's life. He had gone from furious to pleased in a matter of seconds. "It's show time!"

**Okie doke, well that's where I'm going to leave it! I need to start working on homework and applications! I'll hopefully have the next one out sometime this week, but once again, I'm not promising anything. Reviews seriously make me happy, and a happy writer means more chapters out faster! So yeah, click that review button- you know you want to! :)  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**Buon giorno my fabulous readers! So here's the next chapter- which I'm sorry it took me this long to get out. I had it all written last week, but it was just a matter of finding the time to type it up. Haha, so anyways, thanks to all of you who have added this story onto their favorites or story alert. You guys have no idea how much that means to me! Also a special thanks goes to Imogen-x0x for reviewing; you are super awesome! **

Bruce and Marnie stood next each other, looking out the window. Bruce stood with his back to the window, leaning against it and looking over his shoulder at the scene below. Marnie stood up straight with her arms crossed over her chest, occasionally glancing over at Bruce to admire his extreme concentration. He looked peaceful for once; no mask was up to hide behind, and the feeling of guilt he normally carried around with him seemed to be gone. Marnie had rarely seen him like this before and felt a flare of excitement well up in her; he actually trusted her enough to relax and drop the "act" he always put on. She was about to say something, when the sounds of gunshots echoed through the room, pulling both of them out of their musings.

A wave of panic and curiosity swept through Marnie, and before Bruce could even realize what was going through Marnie's mind and stop her, she had bolted out of the room and back into the ballroom where people were cowering and attempting to shield themselves from the chaos erupting through the room. She scanned the area and spotted what all the commotion was about. In the center of the room were several intimidating men with clown masks on, pointing their guns at several of the guests.

"Mawnie, Mawnie!" a young girl cried out as she quickly waddled over to her older sister and latched on to her left leg. One of the men in clown masks turned and pointed his gun at the child, but before he could pull the trigger, everyone's attention was pulled over to the entrance of the room where the sound of maniacal laughter was coming from. A man with clown-like war paint and a tall, blonde, curvy woman sauntered in.

"Well hello there, wealthy citizens of Gotham! Did ya' miss me?" the clown, whom Marnie assumed was the Joker, asked. The whole room remained silent as everyone looked at each other, unsure of what to do. "Surely you couldn't have forgot about me so quickly, especially after what I did to some of your friends and colleagues…" he trailed off, letting the memory of his last reign of terror sink in.

Bruce suddenly appeared next to Marnie and whispered, "Marnie, we need to get out of here-"

Marnie cut him off by picking up her younger sister and giving her to Bruce. "Not without my family. Hold on for a second."

Once again, she disappeared into the sea of people, and started her way around the room to get to her parents. She tuned everything out around her, and focused only on the goal of finding them. She wasn't going to abandon her parents; they had never abandoned her when she was in trouble, so why should she do the same?

However, her efforts were futile once she made it halfway to her parents. She was pulled out of the crowd by her hair and brought to the center of the room. The people around her gasped and tried to pull her back, but were they were unsuccessful.

"Now surely you'll reconsider seeing as we have your precious little daughter here," Marnie heard the Joker say. She looked up to find that her captor was, in fact, the Joker, and then she looked over at her father who appeared absolutely terrified.

_You should've left while you had the chance…_

"Now surely you'd miss her. You choose."

Not entirely sure what was going on, but feeling a strong need to console her father, Marnie called out, "You can't take this guy seriously, Dad, don't give in. Don't worry, I'll be fine. I can take care of myself." The Joker began to laugh, and kicked her in the back, causing her to wince. _Idiot! What are you saying? You know you can't handle this. _Marnie forced her thoughts back and smiled at her father, who still appeared to be uncertain of what to do. Marnie winked over at him and mouthed, 'Trust me, I can do this.'

He nodded and spoke up, "The answer is still 'no', Joker."

The Joker was a bit taken aback; he hadn't been expecting that answer, but nevertheless, it was a pleasant surprise. "Well, it seems, ladies and gentlemen, that your little mayor here is a coward: sending his own daughter in place of himself. It must suck to have a mayor who only cares about himself, huh? Well, sweets, up up up! You're coming with us." He smiled wickedly down at Marnie as he pulled her up onto her feet and dragged her along with him.

Marnie started to panic even more. Why wasn't anyone stopping this? Where was Bruce- or better yet, where was the Batman now that she actually needed him- or the police for that matter? They should've heard about this by now. _This is what you get for being so "righteous"…_

She started struggling against the Joker, kicking and flailing her arms around, screaming- knowing that if she did that enough, she could break free. Seeing that she had little time before they got to the elevator, she aimed a punch at his face. Her fist made contact with his jaw, and a shooting pain shot up her arm, reminding her of how much it hurt to actually hit someone.

He suddenly let her go as his hands flew over to the side of his face in shock. Marnie took this opportunity and scurried away towards the ballroom, only to be stopped by the blonde grabbing her leg. She forced Marnie back on her feet as the Joker walked over to them, laughing hysterically. "This turned out to be more entertaining than I imagined. You've got some nerve, you know? But next time, I might not be as forgiving." He nodded over to one of his goons, who then hit the back of Marnie's head with the butt of his gun.

The last thing that Marnie could see before blacking out was the Joker's crazy, brown eyes staring back at her.

* * *

Marnie awoke to the feeling of a cold, wet towel blotting along her hairline. She slowly opened her eyes to find someone knelt beside her, cleaning off the caked on blood. As her eyes adjusted to the dim lit overhead, she found that it was Jim who was dabbing her forehead. The events before flashed through her mind, and she felt relief wash over her as she pulled him into a hug and cried out, "Oh thank God you're here! Let's get out of here before someone comes…"

She trailed off as she realized he wasn't hugging her back; he seemed foreign now and more distant- not that same friend she had back at the theater. What was going on? She tried to stand up from her chair, only to fall back down due to the dizziness that had resulted from the blow to her head. "Jim, c'mon! I need your help! Don't just stay there!"

He shook his head and avoided her gaze. "I'm sorry, Marnie…"

Marnie stared at him in disbelief. "You can't be serious. You're joking, right? Just trying to scare me, right? Ha ha, good one! You really had me going for a second." she started to laugh nervously as she waited for him to start smiling, but he remained serious, almost appearing apologetic.

"I'm really sorry, Marnie," he said once again, finally meeting her gaze.

Anger began to set in, and she glared at him. She began to yell at him, only to be interrupted.

"So, Jim, you've met this lovely lady before?" the Joker asked as he waltzed into the warehouse room where Marnie was being kept.

Jim nodded, still looking at Marnie. "Yeah, we're in a show together…"

"Well Jimmy-boy, as much as I love to watch a little friendship turn sour, you're going to have to leave now."

Jim nodded and promptly left the room, closing the door behind him. The Joker took out his knife and started to twirl it around his fingers as he walked around the room. Marnie watched him nervously in anticipation of what he was about to do.

She knew the routine well: intimidate, torture, and kill. She had seen it multiple times when she was with her old crowd of people, and this time was no different. She had to find some way to defend herself if she wanted to come out of this alive.

"Comfortable?" he asked, feigning innocence and smiling at her.

"Yeah, it's like I'm staying at the Ritz…" Marnie trailed off and began to scan her surroundings. Rows and rows of boxes piled on top of one another, creating a large labyrinth throughout the room. Near one of the entrances into the maze was what appeared to be an old, rusty crowbar that was just close enough for Marnie to get to in time. Now all that was left to do was wait for the opportune moment to get it.

The lights flickered, and the Joker laughed. "Now, now, now, there's no need to be, uh, snippy with me, Dollface," he warned. "I mean, I've kept you alive this long. You should be thankful…" He walked closer to Marnie and could see a hint of fear in her eyes- but there was something else there that excited him. It was the cool and calculating look of a killer.

"So why haven't you?" Marnie was becoming increasingly terrified as he began to cackle again. The scars on his face extended that wicked smile that instilled fear in anyone who saw it.

"Oh, I haven't counted it out, believe me." He walked behind her and spun her chair around to face him. "But you might be useful for the time being. I still haven't decided." His face was inches from hers, making her anxious. She looked the other way and clenched her jaw, trying to stay calm and think through the situation. "Then again, your birth parents obviously didn't want you, and your adoptive parents don't either I guess. Otherwise they wouldn't have put you in this position," he mused, knowing that it would strike a nerve.

She turned her head back to glare at him. "Or maybe they believed I could get myself out of this. I told them I could, maybe they trust me-"

"Keep on telling yourself that, doll, but you and I know it's not true…"

_Stay calm, Marnie. The door's unlocked, and the crowbar isn't too far. You can get out of here. Don't blow it._

They stared at each other, refusing to be the first to look away as if it were a game. The Joker merely smiled and then tipped her chair backwards, causing her to fall onto the floor. He doubled over, laughing hysterically, and Marnie took this as her chance to launch her plan into action.

She scrambled over to the crowbar, grasping it with two hands, and hid behind the boxes. The laughter started to slow down until it completely stopped and was replaced with the sound of footsteps.

"Marnie, Marnie, Marnie," the Joker began as he started to check each row of boxes. "You are amusing, I'll give you that, but do you really think you can hide from me?"

He was getting closer and closer, and Marnie was sure he could hear her heart beating. Slowly and quietly, she started inching closer to the next row of boxes closest to the door, trying not to let her broken heels click on the floor. _Almost there! _The sound of falling boxes echoed throughout the room as the Joker began to knock them down, each one collapsing like a row of dominoes.

She had little time by now, and the door was right in view. Marnie ran as fast as she could and opened the door that lead out into a long, narrow hallway. Her heart felt as if it were about to burst out of her chest. She was almost free. Marnie ran as fast as her legs would carry her.

However, she wasn't fast enough. The Joker slammed her into the wall, making her knees buckle from under her. She collapsed onto the cold ground and looked up to come face to face with a knife.

**So, sorry to leave you guys there, but that's where I'm going to end it for now. I'm tired and sick, so I figure I should probably head off to bed. As always, please review! I love getting feedback, whether it is something as simple as "great story" or constructive criticism. Just no flames please! **


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello loves! Here's the next chapter for all of your enjoyment! It took me a little longer to get this one out- or at least it felt longer- since it's just been a crazy year as far as school goes. I'm doing my best to keep on updating, and I plan to finish this! A special thanks goes out to Azera-v and ChristianBale Girl 2010 for adding this story onto your favorite stories! You guys are awesome! **

**As always, please review! I love getting feedback, as long as it's not a flame.**

**Disclaimer: By now, I think you should all realize that I don't own the Batman franchise or anything like that, just my OCs that pop up throughout the story.**

Blood trickled down the side of Marnie's face as the cut on the side of her head had reopened when she had hit the ground. She wanted to scream out to try and get anyone's attention that might be wondering around the area outside of the warehouse, but she couldn't make a sound. The feeling of the cold blade against her neck had stopped her from screaming.

A gloved hand cupped her chin and pulled her attention over to the owner of the gloved hands. Her focus started on the yellowing teeth and ended up fixated in his dark eyes. "You are walking on a very slippery slope," The Joker warned, pressing the knife even harder to her neck.

Marnie could still feel the crowbar in her left hand and gripped it tighter, swallowing her fear and awakening the fighter in her. It was a fight-or-flight moment, and she wasn't going to give up. It wasn't in her nature to give up. Her free hand flew up to the knife and applied more pressure onto it, drawing a little bit of blood.

"Go ahead, do it!" she growled. "I dare you." Something had lit up inside her that had been triggered by the threat of death- it was the rush that was brought on by the fear of the unknown, the uncertainty of the future.

Having not expected this sudden change, the Joker was temporarily caught off guard-which was a hard feat to pull off. It excited him; maybe breaking her would be easier than expected.

Marnie used this as an opportunity and swung the crowbar as hard as she could to his head. The Joker fell on top of her, knocking the wind out of her. With all her strength, she pushed him off of her and scrambled over to the nearest door. His laughter followed her down the hall. She was almost out of the building when someone knocked her down on the ground, slamming her head against the door. Things began to fade, and before she was knocked out completely, she saw Jim out of the corner of her eye, dusting himself off.

_Snow was falling over Gotham, blanketing it in a sheet of white as night began to fall. Marnie, a teenager at the time, sat on top of a bolder on the bank of the river; her best friend sat beside her, staring up at the sky. She held a lily in her hand- she had found it on the street; it was the only one that wasn't completely destroyed._

"_Marnie, we should probably head back. You're leaving in an hour, and you probably don't want to push your luck any farther," her friend suggested, looking over at her._

"_Why? What's the rush? It's not like it's a big deal if I'm late or anything. It's not going to change whether I go or not," she joked, still paying attention to the lily in the palm of her hand. "Or are you just afraid of the city at night? You know I've got you covered. Sam and George are just down the street…"_

_The boy shook his head. "It's not that at all, I just think-"_

"_So what? You're just going to leave me here?" Truth be told, she didn't want to be alone, especially when she was about to be sent away to boarding school- away from everything she knew. Marnie was about to say something more when a gust of wind picked up the lily and dropped it gently into the water. "Shit! You've got to be kidding me…" she muttered under her breath, on the verge of breaking down. Nothing was going right for her anymore. It was karma, she believed, for killing that man who'd caused so much trouble in her life._

_Within five seconds, the boy jumped into the waist deep water to retrieve the flower. As he grabbed it, he turned back around to face Marnie and smiled. He was shivering uncontrollably, but it didn't seem to affect him. He was grinning as if he had just received an Oscar. _

"_You little poofer!" she called out before breaking into a fit of laughter. "Get out of the water, it's freezing!"_

"_How 'bout a kiss first? I mean I did save your flower."_

_Marnie rolled her eyes. "You're such an idiot! Just come out of the water, or you'll freeze to death, and I don't want to be held responsible!"_

_He shook his head and still smiled. "I'll trade ya!"_

"_I don't care about the stupid flower, just get out of the water!"_

_He finally gave in, partially because the cold was starting to get to him, and partially because he knew Marnie wouldn't give in. He climbed back onto the rock where he attempted to get Marnie wet by hugging her, but she was quickly able to evade it._

"_Jeez, I hope you're just having an off day," she commented, "otherwise, I'd be leaving with the disappointment of knowing I haven't taught you anything."_

Darkness engulfed Marnie as she slowly regained consciousness. The only thing giving a little light to the room was the small stream of moonlight that peaked through the window on the wall, casting shadows on whatever objects stood in it's path.

She slowly sat up and groaned as the pain in her head began to surface. _I definitely didn't think this one through… Dad probably would've been rescued by now._ Although, how long had she been there? Surely she'd been there two days, three days tops. That wasn't too bad; they're probably still searching for her. That was it. They were just having trouble finding her.

Marnie crawled over to the nearest wall and used it for support to stand up. _Just find a way out. Everyone is probably sleeping or out in the city. It'll be easier to escape, and it'll be easier for the police to find you._ She waited for the dizziness to clear once she stood up and began to walk to the window. One hand grazed along the wall just incase she needed some support, and the other hand massaged her head in an attempt to clear the headache.

When she reached the window, she discovered it was barred from the outside and bolted shut, ensuring that no escape would be possible. "Of course," she groaned, and then turned her attention to the door.

It looked pretty shabby as if it had endured a lot of abuse in its lifetime. Several pieces of wood appeared to be rotting, and there were knife marks on the surface. She was almost sure that she would be able to knock the door down if she applied enough force. _Maybe_ she thought, feeling a bit doubtful since she was having trouble walking. Running would be a little bit more difficult, and she knew for a fact she wasn't as strong as she had been when she was younger.

She sighed, causing a pain to ripple through her torso, and kicked off her heels. "It's worth a try," she mumbled and mentally prepared herself for the inevitable pain. Marnie closed her eyes and counted to three before launching herself forward to the door.

As she was about to make contact, the door flew open to reveal Jim standing there with a plate of food and some bandages. Marnie attempted to stop herself, but failed, and collided with Jim. The plate of food he was carrying flew up into the air and shattered to pieces once it hit the ground.

"What the hell were you doing?" Jim asked as he scrambled around to pick up the food and the bits of broken plate.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm trying to break out because _someone_ won't help me out," she retorted as she stood up and brushed herself off in a failed attempt to look nicer. Her dress was already torn in several places and ruined with bloodstains. The heel on one of her shoes had already broken off, and the mascara she had been wearing had run down her face, creating the illusion that she was crying. Her hair fell out of its French twist styling into disheveled ringlets.

Marnie attempted to pass around him and walk out of the room, but Jim was too quick. He grabbed Marnie by the arm and yanked her back into the room. "You can't leave, Marnie. Just stay here and it'll be easier for the both of us."

She scoffed and tried to pull her arm back. "Right, easier for the both of us? That's funny, you don't seem to be held here against your will-"

"You could've let your father go instead-"

Marnie ignored his comment and continued, "you don't appear to be hurt, and maybe if you wanted something easier, you should've never teamed up with the Joker!" She finished her rant, and Jim remained quiet. "And you know what, I thought you were a friend, but friends don't give friends concussions!"

Jim rolled his eyes and nodded before he silently left the room, closing and locking the door behind him. She was just being immature at the moment and letting things get to her. It would pass sooner or later- at least he hoped it would. He couldn't help but admit she had been right, but if he let her escape, he would surely be killed.

* * *

A knock at the door pulled the Joker from his thoughts. Several people had already interrupted him up to this point, and he was becoming increasingly irritated with each one.

"What?" he yelled, not bothering to look up to see whom it was this time.

Jim opened the door to find the Joker working on one of his explosives. Harley was at his side, looking very bored and despondent as she handed him whatever he needed. For a moment, Jim thought about turning back around and leaving while he still had the chance, but he decided against it, knowing that it would probably make the Joker even more angry. He was still on the Joker's good side (if he even had a good side), but he didn't want to push his luck.

"Well, I'm waiting…" The Joker was now staring at Jim in anticipation of what excuse he had for interrupting him.

Jim looked from the Joker, over to Harley, and then back at the Joker before saying, "Marnie shouldn't be here. This was never part of the plan, so why is she involved?"

The Joker laughed and debated on whether or not to tell him that Marnie had escaped. "Jim, you should know by now that, uh, I don't have 'plans'-"

"She didn't need to be pulled into this! There were plenty of other people we could've used, so why single her out?" Silence filled the room, and Jim instantly regretted even bringing the subject up. Every one of the men who worked for the Joker wondered the same thing- even Harley- but they were all smart enough not to question it.

The Joker's expression was unreadable as he looked Jim over, deciding what to do. His right hand reached into his pants' pocket and grasped the small pocketknife, only to let go of it seconds later. "Jim, Jim, Jim, you're friends with our little Marnie Garcia, right? Tell me what you know about her…" he trailed off and went back to working as he waited to see if Jim did, in fact, know about Marnie's history.

Jim was slightly taken aback. He could've sworn he would be cut to ribbons, but it didn't happen. Instead, he was being ordered to talk about Marnie. _That can't be too hard _he thought before answering, "Marnie was adopted when she was two year old by Anthony Garcia. She has a younger sister; she majored in music with a minor in theater and studied music overseas before returning to Gotham. She's mainly friends with people on the arts scene, but for some reason hangs around Bruce Wayne," he sighed before concluding, "and obviously isn't supposed to be here. She's not a threat, and probably won't be useful to you."

The room was silent once again, and time seemed to freeze as Jim waited for the Joker to say something.

It was just as the Joker had suspected. Marnie had been covering up her past to everyone who hadn't known her before she was sent to boarding school. _Typical Marnie_ he thought.

"She sounds like a real bimbo, Mista' J. I say we just kill her and save us the hassle," Harley commented, but was completely ignored by the Joker, who just waved her off and put the explosive back down on the table.

He smiled at Jim and said in a singsong voice, "It looks like she's been keeping some secrets from you!" The Joker laughed to himself as he observed Jim's confused demeanor. "Gee, you really think you know a person, and then one day the truth just comes up and bites you on the ass, huh?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that she's been leaving out a little, tiny- and by tiny, I mean huge- detail about her life."

"Like what?"

He couldn't help but laugh at Jim's stupidity. "She has a criminal background, and has even killed someone before being sent away. Why do you think you hadn't heard much about her until she moved back? Her father did everything to make sure nothing got out."

Jim was at a loss for words; he wasn't entirely sure what to believe. This could just be the Joker messing with his head again- he was always trying to do that. "Still," he finally spoke up, "she's obviously cleaned her act up." Surely, he would've noticed if she had returned back to her criminal habits- they were always at the theater, and when they weren't, he was always prowling the streets. He would've picked up on her. "So we don't need her. Just leave Marnie alone, and we can use someone else, like Barbara Gordon or someone…"

"Jim-balaya, I think you're missing the big _pic_ture here," the Joker replied and rose from his seat. He walked over to Jim and explained, "I know she hasn't broken the law in a while, but I intend to break her. She will snap sooner or later, and when she does, I think you'll find that she can be extremely useful."

**Well I think that's where I'm going to leave it for right now! I should hopefully have the next chapter up sometime this week since I finally get a break from school, and that chapter should be longer than the past few chapters. Anyways, as always, please review. They inspire me to write, and I really enjoy reading them!  
**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey all! So I know I said I would get this one out like two weeks ago, but that obviously didn't happen. Gotta' love school, right? Anyways here is the next chapter for your enjoyment! I'm sorry it's a little shorter than the rest, but I wanted to update sooner rather than later. I promise the next one will be longer. Also, before I continue on, I would just like to say thanks to Moonlight Calls for reviewing and to Crossmoonchic7459, Eriklover101, and danceallnight for adding this to their favorite stories/story alerts. You guys are awesome! :)  
**

Marnie was sound asleep when Jim came back to check on her. Pieces of bloody gauze were strewn about the room, and he saw she had bandaged up her leg and her head. He felt a twinge of guilt as he looked at her. He had been partly responsible for causing her pain. Marnie's words from earlier that night replayed in Jim's head over and over again. Marnie was normally a forgiving person, but he had a feeling that she'd never forgive him for this.

She was right. A real friend would've never put her in this position- a real friend would've kept her out of this misery. _Bruce Wayne would've never done this to her_ he thought, bitterly. Despite how much Jim hated him, he knew Bruce was the "better person", so to speak. _She probably hates me now…_

At that moment, he came to a decision that would either cost him his life or rekindle a broken friendship, and he was hoping it would be the latter of the two. Despite whatever happened in her past, he didn't want her mind warped from the Joker. Jim took one last glance at Marnie and then made his way out of the building.

Once he was out in the open and far enough away from the building that he was out of earshot, Jim whipped out his phone and dialed the police.

After a few dial tones, someone finally answered, _"Gotham Police Department, what's your emergency?"_

Jim sighed and mustered up all the courage he had to answer. "I have a lead on the Joker's whereabouts."

* * *

Marnie's eyes flew open as the sensation of being watched prickled throughout her body. When her eyes finally adjusted to the darkness, she found the Joker bent over with his face mere inches from hers. Marnie let out a startled yelp as she scrambled over to the nearest corner. That was definitely not what she'd expected to see, and she had made that fact so blatantly clear to the Joker.

He cracked a smile and strode over to the corner that Marnie was currently residing in. "Scared 'ya, did I? Well that's funny, wasn't it you who said that I couldn't be taken seriously? What happened to that tough exterior you had a couple nights ago, hmm? So I guess you talk the talk, but, uh, can't walk the walk, huh?" He broke into a fit of maniacal laughter and cupped Marnie's chin.

She tried to squirm out of his grasp so she wouldn't have to look at the Joker, but he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer. Her eyes darted around, trying to find something to focus on; she feared that if she looked at the Joker, it would be the last the last thing she'd see. In her mind, Marnie began to recite a prayer she'd learned from boarding school that had stuck with her. _Be not that far from me, for trouble is near; haste Thee to help me…_

"Is it the scars, Marnie?" the Joker asked, starting one of his infamous stories about how he got his scars. "Do you want to know how I got these scars? I'm sure you do. Well you see, I was, uh, visiting and having dinner with my mother when dear ol' Dad stumbles in the front door. Now, I hadn't seen my father in five years since I had run off to school, and well, he didn't really like that. You see, he never wanted me to go to school because he didn't want me to become more educated than him. It made him feel inferior to have me pass him up. So-" he pushed his hair out of his face with the hand that was holding the knife and ran his tongue over his bottom lip before continuing, "He storms over to me, grabs me by the arm and says, 'Where you been, kid? Did you learn a lot while you were gone, leaving me left to support this family? Was it worth abandoning us-'

"By now, Mom is upset. She tries to get between us and begs dad, 'Robert, let him go. You know it's not his fault we're in such a shitty place still. Maybe if you stopped spending your money on booze and lord knows what, we wouldn't be in this situation.' Now, she know better than that to stand up to my father, especially when he's drunk. So he turns his attention to her now. He puts his hands around her neck and begins to strangle her, shaking her around like a rag doll. It took a few moments to come out of my shock, and I could see the light draining out of her eyes; so I tackled my father to the ground, but I was too late. After everything was over, I sent someone to check up on her a week later and found she had died…

"Anyways, Dad scrambles up quickly, grabs a knife that had been laying on the countertop and stuck it in my mouth like this-" The Joker stuck the knife in Marnie's mouth and pressed it against the edge of her mouth, "- and says, 'You no good, son of a bitch! Why so serious? You need to smile more. Why don't we put a smile on that face?' So he gave me these and now, I can't stop smiling-"

"Well what'd you do then?" Marnie asked, her words getting warped due to the knife in her mouth.

The Joker smiled at Marnie's question. Her scared demeanor had disappeared for a moment, and hints of her old self peaked through. It was almost as if she was interested in his story. In fact, it seemed like she was enjoying it.

He shrugged. "I killed him."

* * *

Commissioner Gordon stood by the floodlight with a cup of coffee in hand. Batman had just arrived, but he remained in the shadows as always, just in case some cop who wasn't use to see him came up. The whole thing about arresting him on the spot had disappeared with the cops who knew he wasn't "bad", but he still didn't want to risk it.

"Any clues on to Garcia's whereabouts?" Batman asked, his gruff voice cutting through the silence that had been resting between them.

Gordon sighed and shook his head. "Nothing yet. The Joker has been very efficient in covering up his tracks."

The man behind the mask was dying inside, but Batman kept his cool exterior, acting as if this was just another case. It was just another case, but it was like the same situation Rachel had been in, but this time, he wouldn't let Marnie die.

The door to the stairwell swung open, and Anna Ramirez walked out. She noticed Batman out of the corner of her eye- mainly because she had been expecting him to be there-, and nodded to him in acknowledgement. By now, she was used to seeing him around Gordon. "Sir, we've just received an anonymous tip on Miss Garcia's whereabouts. Police are already on their way over to the warehouse on 33rd and Market," she reported, obviously pleased with the sudden progress they were making on the case.

Gordon glanced over to where Batman had been standing, but he had already disappeared- probably on his way over to the warehouse.

* * *

Marnie remained motionless on the ground, curled up in a ball to lessen the pain in her side. She had made the mistake of taking on the Joker and was now paying for it. She regretted letting her emotions get the better of her, but there was nothing she could do to change the situation she was in now. _Just stay still, and maybe he'll think you passed out _she thought to herself, although deep down in her heart she knew it was just wishful thinking.

Moments later, the Joker's foot collided with her back, causing Marnie to cry out in pain. "You know," she could hear the Joker say, "it must be pretty disappointing that no one has even bothered looking for you. I mean I know I'm a bit disappointed the general public isn't really reacting to your disappearance. Maybe they found out about your little, uh, criminal history shall we call it? Now, you're probably just considered a freak just like the rest of us-"

"I'm not like you and your group, and I never will be," she managed to say.

The Joker broke out into a fit of laughter before replying, "_Ha-ha, ho, hee-hee_, I beg-**uh** to differ. As I seem to remember, you burned a poor, _ha_, a poor, innocent man alive. You took away his life and robbed him of any potential he had. Not many criminals have done that- they just steal or some pointless little thing like that-"

"I didn't mean to kill him!" she yelled, finding the strength she needed to get back on her feet.

"What, the voices made you do it? Sure and it's raining cats and dogs, and the pigs are flying… C'mon Marnie, you and I both know you wanted him dead, so don't bother with those excuses-"

His rant was interrupted yet again, but this time it wasn't by Marnie. Harley burst through the door, shouting, "Mista' J, the cops are here! We need to get out of here! Jim's already got the car ready."

He repressed the urge to kill both Harley and Marnie right there, remembering why Marnie was still alive and that Harley was still useful to have around- for the time being. "Well, looks like we have to cut this lovely little, uh, date short. I know, I know, I know, but don't look so sad. We'll see each other soon enough." He picked up a gas can and waltzed around the room, spilling it everywhere. "You and I will meet again when you're least expecting it, and I will recognize your face. I won't say goodbye my friend, for you and I will meet again." The Joker then took one last look at Marnie, lit up a match and tossed it on the ground before finally running off.

The gasoline ignited all around Marnie, causing her to panic. She had grown scared of fire and its unpredictability ever since she killed that man, and now she might actually end up like him. She stumbled over towards the door, with an arm covering her face, where a small gap free of flames had been left. It was slowly starting to close off, and Marnie made a dash for it, figuring it was her last chance out.

Once she made it out the door, her legs gave out from underneath her, causing her to collapse to the ground. The sounds of shouting and footsteps became louder and louder as the police drew nearer to her location.

"She's over here!" Marnie could hear one of them same, and moments later a pair of strong arms picked her up bridal style and carried her out of the warehouse. She was then placed on a gurney and wheeled over to the paramedics waiting just outside. A man and his fellow coworkers lifted her up into the safety of the ambulance, where he sat with her with Marnie and hooked her up to the proper machines and IVs.

The man smiled at Marnie, who attempted to smile back but failed; she was too distracted and upset at the words the Joker had left her with. Those were the same words she had said to Jack Napier- her friend she was with on the night she left for boarding school, and the friend who was reportedly dead.

**Okay, so this chapter was sort of hard to write for some reason, so I'm sorry if it feels a little choppy and whatnot, but I hope you all like it! I know you guys are probably a little mad I left you guys there, but hopefully- if school and application stuff lighten up a bit- I should have the next chapter out sometime soon. Anyways, please review! I love getting feedback as long as it isn't a flame. If anyone wants to beta for me, I'd be super happy. I really want to improve as a writer, and that would definitely help a bit. Oh yeah, and one last thing before I sign off: the little goodbye quote is from Tom Petty. It isn't mine!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey fellow writers, readers, and kids from one to ninety-two (I'm already in the Christmas mood, and it's not even thanksgiving yet)! So as always, I'd like to give a shout out/thanks to AmberCyn for adding this to her story alert. You are super awesome! Anyways, you guys feel free to review! I love getting feed back even if it's just a small little ditty. Oh yeah, on a side note did anyone else bawl their eyes out when Dobby died in Harry Potter? I knew it was coming because I read the book, but I still was crying like a little baby.**

Jim, as well as Harley and the rest of the remaining gang, avoided the Joker at all costs the following day, only coming into contact with him when necessary. Ever since the police raid, the Joker had become increasingly irritable and more violent than usual. He had already killed off two of his lackeys and had given both Harley and Jim newly healing wounds that would result in some nice scars.

As he cleaned up the gash in his leg, Jim brooded on the subject of Marnie. What made her so valuable, or rather important, to the Joker? Most of the hostages he took in were dead within a few hours of being captured, or the ones who escaped never bothered him to the point of visually affecting him. It wasn't that he was moping around and being sad. In fact it was far from it. His humor had been replaced with malice and he was less forgiving, if that was even possible.

The Joker had obviously known Marnie in the past- that much he knew-, but what made her so special? What made her so different from Harley? Harley had been at the Joker's side long before Jim had, and she had proven herself useful to the Joker even if she did annoy him.

Jim and Harley finished tending to their wounds as the rest of the remaining people sat at the round kitchen table in an old, abandoned apartment complex and played a round of poker to kill the hours that slowly passed by. Nobody spoke in fear of making too much noise and just focused on their activities.

In the room adjacent to the kitchen sat the Joker who had just thrown his knife at the door for the fifth time. In the corner of the room was Kevin, one of the Joker's henchmen, lying in a puddle of his own blood; his lifeless eyes still wide open in horror. The Joker stood up and walked over to yank the knife out of the door. Sure, he knew the cops would find Marnie sooner or later, but he was just starting to make progress with her.

Twirling the knife, he walked back to the bed he had been sitting on and sighed, only to get back on his feet seconds later. The Joker pushed the nagging thought of Marnie out of his mind and focused on the current situation: he was bored, and there was a lot of terror and chaos he needed to catch up on. Nothing made him happier than the terrified screams of people or running into Batman- both of which he hope to accomplish.

He strode out the door and into the kitchen where everyone turned to look at him with cautious eyes, unsure of what he was going to do.

"Up, up, up!" the Joker sang as he pulled out a gun and tossed it to Jim. "We've got a date with Batsy!"

* * *

"Miss Garcia, we need you to describe everything that happened while you were held hostage. We need anything we can get to persuade the jury to put the Joker in a maximum-security prison. It's quite obvious by now that Arkham can't hold him." Commissioner Gordon sat across from Marnie, who sat straight up and emotionless. She did, however, appear to be extremely exhausted: her eyes revealed everything.

Marnie had been escorted over to the police department twenty-four hours after her intake at the hospital. The media had flooded around her, but thankfully Gordon had helped her get inside safely.

She shook her head, receiving a few sighs from the officers around her.

Jim Gordon leaned forward and whispered softly so that only the young woman could hear, "Look, Marnie, I know it's been a tough for you this past week, but not talking about it and not allowing us to help you is only going to make matters worse."

_Don't say anything, Marnie. You can't rat Jack out. He was your best friend and never ratted you out. Why should you do the exact opposite? _Marnie was torn in two at this point. If the Joker hadn't thrown that curve ball at her, she would've been glad to tell the police everything, but now she wasn't so sure. Marnie knew she shouldn't even be questioning herself- it should be clear-cut: tell them all what happened and help take down the Joker. So why couldn't she do it?

Marnie finally looked up at the commissioner, her icy blue eyes betrayed her feelings of confusion. "I'm sorry, but I can't right now. I just need…" she paused and nervously looked down at her hands at the note she had been holding since she left the hospital, and then looked back up."… I just need some time. Time to think and comprehend things. I'll try to help, but just give me some time."

Gordon nodded. "Alright Miss Garcia, fair enough. Mr. Wayne is here to pick you up and take you to a safer location-"

"Why him?" Marnie quickly interrupted, starting to panic. Bruce couldn't be brought into this; she couldn't let anything happen to him because of her.

"The rest of your family is in hiding, and your father is working and under close supervision. He specifically informed me that he only wanted Mr. Wayne to drive you back. He doesn't trust anyone else with the job."

"Good to know he still cares," Marnie mumbled to herself as she lethargically followed Gordon out of the room and into the main hallway where Bruce was waiting. He was leaning against the wall looking through the small window; the sound of uneven heel clacking pulled him away from his thoughts.

Bruce glanced up at Marnie to see her walking- or rather hobbling- towards him. Something seemed a little off about her, not just that her appearance that she had tried to keep perfect for so long was now completely nonexistent, but the confidence she usually carried herself with seemed to be in short supply.

"Well aren't we a sight for sore eyes?" he commented and pulled her into a hug that she didn't return. Normally she would've been ecstatic to hug Bruce, but now it was different. She was too distracted by something.

Bruce pulled away and held her at an arm's length away to get a better look at her. Dark circles that surrounded her eyes mixed with the multiple bruises and cuts that colored her face. The purple dress she had been wearing had been turned into rags, and her long red hair she had taken pride in was frayed and unruly.

"You ready to go?" Bruce asked, taking off his jacket and wrapping it around Marnie's shoulders in an attempt to stop her shivers. Marnie nodded and walked out of the station with Bruce following close behind her.

They drove in silence for a few minutes, not really sure what to say to one another. Marnie was curled up in a tight cocoon with Bruce's jacket. Bruce was mentally beating himself up for not finding Marnie sooner and felt personally responsible for her downhearted mood. He quickly glanced over at her to find she was looking a piece of paper in her hands. She appeared to be deep in thought, but much to his surprise, she was the first one to break the silence between them despite the fact she spoke very softly.

"Can I stay with you? I don't want to be left alone tonight…"

He looked over at Marnie as they stopped at a red light to find that she was looking up at him; her blank expression had changed into that of a scared child. Tears brimmed her eyes, and her bottom lip quivered as she struggled to remain calm.

Sure Bruce was close to her, but he'd never seen her look so upset since Jack had died. What had happened to her while she was held hostage? He knew it was traumatizing for most people to be around the Joker- and most of those people wound up dead-, but Marnie wasn't most people. She was stronger, and quite frankly more twisted, and wasn't one to be affected by the most warped of people.

Marnie quickly glanced away and hid her face in the darkness. He guessed that a tear had finally escaped or that she was embarrassed by the question.

The light turned green, and they continued to drive down the road. "Uh, yeah sure. That's fine," he replied, stumbling over his words. Bruce would have to quickly cover any evidence around the house that could lead Marnie to suspect that he was the Batman. He had cleaned up and covered his tracks well, but he wanted to be absolutely positive there was nothing around.

Bruce sped down the road and merged onto the exit that would take him to the outskirts of Gotham and over towards the mansion.

"Bruce," Marnie began, her voice still barely audible, "this may sound like a stupid question, and well, it probably is, but am I like them?"

"Like who?" It was difficult to hear her voice over the roaring engine.

"Like all the criminals out there. I've done everything they've done, so what makes me so different?"

"In the past, you're right. You were like them, but what separates you from them, Marnie, is the fact that you've changed and become a better person. You haven't thought about stealing or killing or whatever else you used to think of, right?" He asked and Marnie nodded. "And that's why you're different. You chose to become a better person, and you've stuck with it."

Marnie nodded and muttered, "Thanks." Bruce gave her a reassuring smile as they pulled into the long driveway of the Wayne manor. Alfred was waiting for them at the door and greeted Marnie with a handshake that she weakly returned.

"Glad to see you're well and safe, Miss Garcia," Alfred greeted and helped her out of the car. Marnie collapsed as she attempted to stand up and grasped onto the Lamborghini for support. Her legs hadn't been ready to hold her weight after sitting down for a while.

Bruce ran around the car and attempted to pick up Marnie, but she managed to struggle out of his grasp.

"No, no, no! I can walk by myself. I don't need you carrying me," she shouted, causing Alfred to smirk over at Bruce, who had a surprised look on his face at her sudden burst of energy. Marnie fell down to the ground and tried to use the car to help her up and managed to get up a couple of inches, only to fall back down.

Bruce crouched down to Marnie's level and offered out a hand. "At least let me help you get back up." She stared at his hand for a few moments before taking it, and he pulled her back onto her feet. They stood there for a moment as Marnie steadied herself, and Bruce mentioned to Alfred, "Get the guest bedroom in the right wing ready for Marnie."

The butler nodded and walked back into the house, ready to do as he was told. Bruce wrapped an arm around Marnie's waist to help support her as they slowly walked into the manor. It was the most Marnie would allow Bruce to do. She may have been tortured and weaker than usual, but she still refused to rely too much on anyone.

That was a good sign, Bruce had to admit; she was still as stubborn and prideful as ever. At least the Joker hadn't taken that away from her. He looked down at Marnie's hands to find that she still had the note grasped tightly in her right hand. What was in that note?

They trekked down to one of the many spare rooms in the right wing where Bruce left her alone to wash up. Alfred had already placed towels and a robe on the bed and had lit the fireplace on the far end of the room.

The room was nothing less than immaculate, but Marnie didn't expect anything less from Bruce Wayne. _Always keeping it classy, huh? _She thought to herself.

The dark hardwood floor, as well as the fireplace, warmed the room. In the middle of the room, a small white couch sat a couple of feet away from the fireplace, and to its left was a side table with a gold antique lamp resting on the top.

On the furthermost part of the room to the right was a four-poster canopy with white sheets embroidered with light blue patterns, which gave it an elegant hue. Behind the bed, a window overlooking the forest that surrounded the house gave way to the perfect view of the night sky.

Marnie sighed as she picked up the set of towels and the robe and entered into the English-looking bathroom. She put each on of the towels on the gold painted rack and hung the robe on the handle of the bathroom door before looking at her reflection in the mirror for the first time since her abduction.

Despite the fact that all the dirt and grime had been removed from her face in order to prevent infection, she barely recognized herself standing in the mirror. The bandage wrapped around her head was stained with blood, and the bruises and cuts discolored her face and gave her the look of a downtrodden outcast in the slums of Gotham.

Marnie reached up to touch her frayed, greasy hair, making sure she still had hair and it wasn't just an illusion. She undid the bandage, and a small clump of hair fell out at the touch and floated gently to the ground.

Her eyes followed the fallen hair and wound up on the crinkly sheet of paper in her hand.

"_A man came by and dropped this off, ma'am," a young nurse said and placed an envelope in Marnie's hands. "I promised him I'd give it to you right away." The nurse then proceeded to change out the IV and fluid bags as Marnie broke open the seal and deciphered the messy writing:_

_Hey doll, sorry to cut our little engagement short. We'll see each other soon though, I promise, and after all, I am a man of my word. Now, if I were you, I wouldn't do anything stupid. I like my property in one piece, and it would be a shame to toss it out prematurely. Besides, don't forget who helped you out all those years ago…_

Tears began to fall from Marnie's eyes, and she finally released the note, letting it fall to the ground. She turned on the shower to drown out the sounds of her sniffling; she shed the rags she had been wearing and stepped into the warm, relaxing shower, letting all of her pent-up emotions flow with the water. _Jack still can't be alive. He was declared dead, you went to his funeral. The Joker is just trying to mess with your head. He can't be serious- but how would he have known what you said to Jack before you left? There are billions of other ways to say goodbye, so why'd he choose that one? _

Marnie remained standing in the shower until she couldn't cry anymore. She dried off and wrapped the warm bathrobe around her body. The only thing she could feel now was the hunger racking her entire body. Marnie wiped the rest of the tears from her eyes before stepping back into the bedroom where she found Alfred setting a pair of clothes on the bed.

"Ah, Miss Garcia, right on time. Master Wayne has just left on a business emergency, but he's instructed me to bring you these clothes to sleep in. Also, I figured you'd be hungry, so food is up in the kitchen whenever you're ready. I can assure you, Miss, that it's much better than that junk they call food at the hospital."

For the first time since she arrived, Marnie actually smiled. Alfred somehow always managed to make her feel better, even if it was just for a moment. "Thanks, Alfred. I really appreciate this." She stared down at her fidgeting hands for a few seconds, feeling a bit awkward since he had seen her at one of her weaker moments.

"Anytime, ma'am. It's always refreshing to have another person in the house," he replied, and with that, he left, closing the door behind him and giving Marnie her privacy.

She quickly slipped on the black sweatpants that had been left for her. As expected, they were entirely too large on her and completely swallowed her lower half of her body. She rolled up the bottom of the pants up to around her ankles so that she could walk without fear of tripping.

Marnie grabbed the red scoop neck t-shirt and pulled it on, hiding her body and her slight curves. For once, she was silently cursing Bruce for being too tall and too muscular. She hiked up the sweatpants to keep them from falling down around her ankles and followed the scent of food out of her room and up to the kitchen.

**Yay for a longer chapter! I'm sorry if it was a little slow moving, but I've just had a terrible writer's block due to school being so crazy. Anyways, please review por favor! It would make me one happy chica, and since I am having writer's block issues I'm open to any suggestions as to what you'd like to see in the story. I mean I have a general idea of where I want the story to go; I just lost my way on how to get there. Oh well, I figure once I watch the movies again I'll be back on track. Well, ttfn: ta ta for now!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Happy second day after turkey day everyone! I hope you all ate lots of delicious food! As a treat for you guys, I'm updating super early (mainly because I've had loads of free time to write)! I'd like to give thanks to Love4Ulquiorra978 for reviewing, and to AmberCyn for adding this onto her favorite stories.**

Bruce arrived back at the mansion around three in the morning to find Marnie sound asleep at the kitchen counter with her phone resting by her right hand and the remnants of a cup of tea by her left. The plant closest to her looked as if it had been freshly watered, causing Bruce to suspect Marnie had slowly drained the tea while Alfred wasn't looking.

The small portable television Alfred kept around the kitchen to watch the news had been turned on to some channel that was playing reruns of Spongebob. Alfred was at the sink washing dishes with his back turned to Bruce.

"So this is what you actually watch when I'm gone," Bruce commented, keeping his voice in a hushed tone so that he wouldn't disturb Marnie.

Alfred continued to wash the dishes. "Sorry to disappoint, Sir, but as comical as it would be if I did watch mindless cartoons, it was Miss Garcia who requested that I keep this channel on. I've tried turning it off, but she always wakes up seconds and turns it back on. It's like clockwork if I do say so myself."

Bruce laughed and took a seat next to Marnie. Despite being sound asleep, she still appeared to be tense and on guard. Even though the huge clothes engulfed her small frame, every muscle in her body was tight and ready to pounce if danger was near. It was as if she was a watchdog sleeping in a corner of a room with one ear up, listening for any sign of trouble.

"How long has she been sleeping?" Bruce asked as he watched Alfred finish cleaning the kitchen.

"About two hours, Sir. She wanted to keep me company while I worked in the kitchen, but I believe she just didn't want to be alone."

Bruce nodded and looked over at the sleeping form beside him. New bruises were forming on her face, and the long hair she had braided still appeared wet. He got up from his seat and disappeared from the kitchen for a moment, and he returned seconds later with a blanket in hand.

As the blanket was wrapped around her, Marnie stirred and slowly opened her eyes. Once the haze of sleep cleared, she could see Bruce standing by and smiling down at her.

"Hi," she whispered and smiled back up at him.

"Hey," he said back. "There's a bed you could've slept in. You do know that's what they're for, right?"

"I'm sure you're very familiar with a few other things beds are used for." Marnie couldn't help but laugh as soon as the words left her mouth.

Even though Alfred had his back turned to them, his shoulders shook, giving away his quiet chuckle.

Bruce shook his head and began, "Marnie, you know that's not-"

"Hey Bruce, it's okay. Everyone knows about your reputation with women. There's no use in denying it." Marnie finally sat up and wrapped the blanket tighter around her body. She yawned and then patted him on the shoulder. "Embrace your gorgeousness, kid."

"Kid? Says the person who still watches cartoons."

She rolled her eyes and pointed over to the television. "Spongebob Square Pants is highly educational! I wouldn't expect a nonintellectual like you to understand-" The loud buzzing noise emitted from the cell phone on the table interrupted her rant. Marnie reached over, grabbed it, and promptly opened it to read the newly sent message. The smile on her face fell and fear filled her eyes once more.

"Marnie, what's going on?" Bruce asked, staring and taking in her reaction in an attempt to read her. Alfred stopped what he was doing and was in turn watching Marnie.

It was clear she was trying to hide her reaction. She looked back up and smiled to appear happy and calm, but the smile never reached her eyes.

"Nothing. Who said something was going on?" Marnie quickly answered, her voice rising up an octave higher than usual. She quickly stood up from the stool and briskly walked out of the room, yelling a "'night" over her shoulder only to be followed closely behind by Bruce.

They both made it out to the front entrance foyer before Bruce finally reached out and grabbed Marnie by the arm to stop her. She turned around to face him and jerked her arm around in an attempt to free herself but found she couldn't. He suddenly appeared much bigger yet protective, imposing yet worried.

"Bruce, please let go. I just want to go to bed. I swear I'm fine, really!" Marnie tried to steady her voice, but her tone wavered and a tear trickled down her cheek.

"Right, which is why you're crying."

Marnie glared at him and began to hit his chest with her free arm and struggled to get free. "Bruce, just let me go," she cried and articulated each word with a pound to his chest. He finally caught her other wrist and steadied her shaking. She looked up into his eyes and sighed in defeat, relaxing her entire body as she did so.

Bruce, seeing that she was relaxed, let go of one of her hands and wiped the tears off her face. Neither one of them said a word. Marnie didn't want to talk about what was going on, and Bruce knew the more he pushed her to talk about it, the less likely she would.

Marnie leaned her head to rest on Bruce's chest, jerked back as if he'd burned her, and the finally rested her head against his chest. The heat radiating from his body warmed her up and comforted her. With an arm wrapped around her and on of her hands in his, Bruce began to sway back and forth, bringing Marnie with him.

"I'm not dancing," she whined and tried to stop them both. Bruce spun her out and spun her back into his arms. "Seriously!" Despite her protests, a smile slowly crept onto her face. They waltzed around the room for a few minutes more until they came to a stop.

"Feeling better?" He asked, smiling because he knew she did.

Marnie stared up at him and nodded as she returned the smile. "Yeah," she muttered. "Thanks." She took a step back and left Bruce alone in the room as she went back to her temporary room.

* * *

"_Today we are joined by Marnie Garcia. For those of you who don't know, although I don't know how you wouldn't, she's the mayor's daughter who was abducted by the infamous Joker and lives to tell the tale._

_Now Marnie, how are you? You look surprisingly well for everything you've been through."_

"_Thanks, I guess," Marnie replied and ran a hand through her hair. "I'm actually really great." She forced a convincing smile. She had covered up the bruises on her face with makeup to the point where they were only visible to the people who looked closely at her. _Praise the lord I know how to use makeup _Marnie thought to herself. She was determined to appear unscathed and unaffected by her kidnapping. She couldn't let the Joker see how much he had affected her._

_The petite blonde woman sitting on the couch across from Marnie smiled back at her and began her interview, "So Marnie, what can you tell our viewers at home about the horrors you experienced with the murdering psychopath?"_

_Marnie threw her head back and laughed. "The horrors? To be honest, I don't understand why everyone's so terrified of this guy. He's just some loon with a taste for theatrics." _

"_Surely you don't mean that. We are talking about the some criminal who brought Gotham to its knees a couple years back?"_

"_The one with the clown makeup and scars? Yeah, I'm pretty sure we're talking about the same person. I mean, as far as I'm concerned he's just lazy. He may be the mastermind behind everything, but he just has his goons, or whatever you want to call them, to do all the work while he just sits back and enjoys himself."_

_The reporter looked taken aback with her eyes wide open. "Well, Marnie, as I seem to recall from two nights ago while you were leaving the hospital, you appeared to be frightened for your life."_

_For a moment, it seemed like the calm composure Marnie had carried throughout the interview was starting to crumble to the ground, but she just continued to smile and sighed. "Well hospitals do have that effect on you. They're pretty intimidating with all the death and sickness and whatnot," she smoothly lied and smoothed out her dress._

_By now, the reporter was just about to loose it. She was getting nothing out of Marnie about the events that passed. "You do know how many people the Joker has killed? Are you aware that the Joker attempted to kill your father the last time he was loose?"_

_The smile that had graced Marnie's face was starting to fade into a straight line. "Yes, I was aware of that, but he didn't succeed did he? Now, I'm sorry if you were looking for some horrible story of being kidnapped, but in all honesty I wasn't terrified. The Joker is just some crazy nut job with visions of grandeur-"_

The Joker shut off the television, and everyone who sat in the den remained silent. He shook his head and threw the remote at a guy sitting at a table eating a sandwich. The Joker doubled over in laughter as the guy toppled over from his chair and onto the ground.

Sure, he was a little upset that Marnie hadn't listened to him when he told her not to do anything stupid, but he definitely wasn't disappointed. Her fake self-assurance and confidence would make her downfall even sweeter. She was too prideful to let people see how terrified she really was, and boy was she scared. He had seen it in her eyes when she had looked at him, and it was still there during her interview.

It was almost comical how she hid her fear and talked him down as if he was just an amateur. The Joker chuckled to himself. _No_ he thought _she's not convincing anyone that I'm harmless._

She was stubborn- he'd give her that. Still as stubborn as when she was a teenager, but it was clear she was beginning to crack, and with a few more pushes she'd be his.

"What do you want us to do, Boss?" Jim asked from the couch.

"We wait for the opportune moment," the Joker answered with a wide smile on his face.

* * *

Marnie stood in line staring down at the pair of socks in her hands._ Just take them. The line's long, and you're going to be late if you stay any longer_. She looked around to see if anyone was watching, but then shook the thought out of her head. _You're seriously going to steal socks?_

She struggled to keep her thoughts straight and logical, but she wound up ripping the tags from the socks anyways and began walking towards the door. _There's something wrong with you if you're stealing socks…_

Marnie stopped in her tracks and realized how ridiculous she was acting. "God damn it," she muttered under her breath and dropped the tags as she walked over to one of the saleswoman and handed her the socks. "I found these in the bin, but they don't have a tag on them so I thought I'd let you know."

"Oh, why thank you," the woman said, sounding surprised, and walked away towards the back room.

Marnie spun around on her heels and swiftly walked out of the store and down three blocks to the theater district where one of her friends waited inside a coffee shop.

"Marnie!" a tall, slender woman called out as she rushed over to her friend and pulled her into a bone-crushing hug. "I've been so worried about you, and when I tried to stop by your apartment after you were let out of the hospital you weren't there!" Marnie's friend always worried about anyone when she couldn't find them, and it didn't help matters that Marnie had been kidnapped.

They sat down at the nearest table as Marnie said, "Yeah, I was staying with Bruce for a bit until I felt comfortable being on my own again." Her friend raised an eyebrow at her and looked as if she were about to say something, so Marnie swooped in and cut her off, "It's not like that Abby. I just didn't want to be alone in my apartment, so he let me stay with him since he had the space."

Abby still stared incredulously at Marnie. "Sure, that's it," she muttered sarcastically. "I'm sure nothing's that simple with that guy, and besides you could've called me or Sara! We would've been glad to keep you company."

Marnie sighed and rolled her eyes. "He really is a good person and a good friend despite what you and everyone else at the theater might think." She smiled as she stood up and looked around. "I'm getting some coffee, do you want anything?"

Shaking her head, Abby replied, "No. The performance is in two hours, so I don't want anything that could ruin my voice."

Marnie nodded and walked over to the counter at the far end of the shop to order.

"Welcome to Starbucks, what can I get for you today, Miss?"

She couldn't help but smile back at the young man working behind the counter. It was rare to find a college guy who still had manners. "I'll take a venti skinny cappuccino with double shots of espresso and five equals please."

As he grabbed the largest cup, the young man nodded and wrote down her order. "Alright, I'll have that up for you in a few."

Marnie stepped over to the side and waited for her drink as the rest of the people behind her waited to place their orders. They were pretty busy today, which wasn't surprising for how blistery it was outside. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement in a side hallway that led out into an alley.

She turned her head to look over and found Jim motioning over to her. Marnie's eyes grew wide as she quickly shook her head back and forth. _No, not again, not again please!_

His motions became increasingly frantic and finally he stormed over to her. "Marnie," he whispered just loud enough for her to hear. "You need to get out of here now."

"Jim, just leave me alone or I'll call the police. I just want my coffee-"

"I'm serious Marnie! The Joker is coming for you. Just forget about the stupid coffee and get out of here!"

As he finished, screams echoed around the shop as the sound of gunshots cracked through the air. People everywhere began to scramble for cover as bullets ricochet through the shop.

**Well, sorry to leave it there, but I need to go type a paper! I'll try to update as soon as possible, I promise. Don't forget to review! Reviews always make me happy and keep me motivated to write! Also, just sort of reiterating this, if you guys have any suggestions as to what you want to see in the story just message me or put it in a review! I'm kind of in a rut as to how to get to where I want in this story. Gotta love writers block, right?**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey readers! So, sorry it's taken me a while to get this chapter out; school is hectic right now and college applications are due super soon. Haha, anyways I'll stop my tangent right there. Well I hope you all enjoy this chapter, and I'd like to give thanks to Love4Ulquiorra978 and PeacefullyCrazy for reviewing; also thank you to those of you who've added this to your alerts and favorites! It means a lot to me.**

"Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen," the distinctive voice announced, and before the Joker even finished, Marnie had bolted past Jim and out into the ally, sprinting as fast as she could away from the building.

All around her, people paused and watched as she ran down the sidewalk until her legs could carry her no farther. Marnie hailed a taxi and jumped into the first one that pulled up.

"Fourteenth and Oleander, please," she huffed and slammed the car door shut behind her. She reached into her purse and pulled out her lipstick, applying it with a shaking hand.

"You were almost caught by the Joker again and yet you're putting on lipstick?" came Jim's voice from the driver's seat.

Marnie's heart skipped a beat and she frantically reached over to unlock the door, but found she couldn't. "Stop the car this instant! I'm walking-"

"Chill out, I'm not bringing you back to him. I'm just trying to help you out," he said in an attempt to calm her down.

"Look Jim, I appreciate you helping me out back there, but one good deed doesn't make up for everything you put me through-"

"Marnie, if it wasn't for me, you'd still be with him!"

Shocked, Marnie instantly shut up and glared at him through the rear view mirror. "What do you mean?"

"I tipped the police off. That's why they were able to find you."

"Oh…" Her gaze softened, and she remained silent for a few minutes as they drove along before asking, "So how come you weren't with the Joker back there?"

"He thinks I'm getting ready for a show. It's part of the 'act-like-a-normal-person' routine I tell him I'm doing. If he knew I had gone behind his back to help you out, he'd probably kill me."

Marnie nodded and thought about all of the risks he was taking just for her just for her to get away from the Joker, but why? Jim was risking both life and limb for someone he barely even knew for a year; someone who probably wouldn't do the same thing in his position.

"Thanks," she muttered. "But why are you doing this for me? I mean, don't get me wrong, I really do appreciate it, but why?"

The taxi pulled over and stopped in front of the large, government plaza. "Because you'd be lost without me… and because despite whatever you've done in the past, and even if you really did kill a man-"

"Wait, how'd you-"

Jim ignored Marnie and continued, "I can't let the Joker warp your mind like he does with everyone. I truly believe you are good, and Gotham can't have another normal person turn into a villain. Now get out and stay alert. He's still looking for you-"

"Don't I need to pay you?"

He stared back at her in disbelief. "You're seriously asking that? I'm not even a taxi driver…"

She hopped out of the car and mumbled, "Right, stupid question…" Behind her, the cab squealed and drove off down the street. Marnie took a deep breath to steady her breathing and collected her thoughts.

* * *

Inside her father's office, Marnie and her dad had been going through the list of people she could trust completely as the footage from the coffee shop played repeatedly on the television behind them. The only person they could both agree on at that point was Commissioner Gordon, and Marnie was attempting to get Bruce on that list. He had already turned down several friends she had suggested and made Marnie increasingly frustrated.

"Dad, honestly Bruce is the person I trust the most. I highly doubt he'd sell me out to some psychopath," she tried to explain as she sat in front of his desk. "He's helped me through a lot and kept me from returning back on old habits-"

"Marnie, I know you've been friends with him, but he does have a reputation, and I don't want him taking advantage of you…"

She sighed in annoyance and leaned back in her chair. Leave it to a father to worry about that when they were trying to prevent a whole different situation. "In all the time I've been friends with Bruce he hasn't tried a single thing, and besides I'm a big girl now- I can tie my own shoes and everything. I've grown up, and I'm pretty sure I can handle guys."

Anthony stared out the window of his office at the snow that was beginning to fall. He felt a twinge of sorrow surface as he heard his daughter say that, and he knew she was right. She wasn't daddy's little girl anymore; she was an adult and could make her own decisions. He sighed in defeat before announcing, "Fine, but if he lays one hand on you he's off the list."

Marnie rolled her eyes at her father being as overprotective as always. "Yeah, yeah," she muttered and stood up from the chair with her messenger bag over her shoulder. "I'll see you at dinner tomorrow night, but I'm running late. I'm headed over to Bruce's for a little if you need anything."

Marnie walked over to Anthony's side and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Remember what I said," he called after her as she swiftly left the room.

Bruce briskly made his way down from his room and into the kitchen where Alfred was preparing dinner.

"Miss Garcia's arrived, sir. I'm not sure as to where she's wondered off to, but I did hear some music coming from the library," he reported as Bruce slipped on a white t-shirt.

"How late am I?" he asked, hoping he hadn't kept Marnie waiting too long.

"Over and hour," Alfred answered nonchalantly, "but she only arrived here about ten minutes ago, so I wouldn't be too worried."

Relieved, Bruce headed made his way into the large labyrinth of his house and into the library. There she sat at the piano in the middle of the room with the fireplace on. Liszt's Consolation No. 2 filled the room as Marnie's fingers maneuvered gracefully across the keys, and for the first time since being rescued she truly seemed at peace with the world.

Her shoulders were loose and relaxed, and instead of that foreboding sense of terror she had carried around for the past few days, she was back to the carefree person Bruce knew well.

He slowly walked over and sat down on the bench beside her as Marnie glanced over at him and smiled. She continued to play until the song was finished and placed her hands in her lap. "You smell nice," she commented which resulted in a smirk from Bruce. "What? I can't comment on the way a person smells?"

He couldn't help but laugh. "I didn't say anything like that-"

"Your little smirk implied it."

"What smirk? I just didn't expect a complement, especially coming from you," he replied, his smirk turning into a smile.

Marnie hit Bruce on the arm and unsuccessfully tried to keep a straight face. "Hey now, I can be nice every once in a while." She lifted her hands back up to the piano and began to play a quiet tune that was unfamiliar to him.

He intently watched her as she hummed along with the treble notes that she played. Her cheeks were still flushed from the cold outside. His gaze traveled down to her soft, inviting lips for a moment until his rational mind tore him away from them and focused on her face.

The thought of kissing her had crossed his mind once before, but it was more tempting this time with the way the orange light reflected off her face and that she seemed completely relaxed- something he could never achieve.

"Do I have something on my face?" Marnie asked and stopped playing as her hand instinctively flew up to her face. A blush slowly crept upon her face when he didn't respond. "What? Are the bruises bad or something?"

Bruce moved her hand away from his face and kept in his rough, calloused ones; her cold hands began to warm up from his touch. Startled by this sudden gesture, Marnie's heart leapt and her thoughts told her to pull her hand away, but her hand remained in his. "No, you look fine," he replied, smiling as he did so.

Her eyes rose to meet his gaze as millions of conflicting thoughts passed through her mind. _Stop it and just go back to playing the piano, or maybe you could go find Alfred and keep him company… Don't do this, Marnie; you swore you wouldn't. Even if he is tall and muscular with gorgeous brown eyes and smells like- No! Stop it, stop it, stop it… _

Despite the war raging on in their minds, their faces grew nearer and nearer until they were mere inches away from each other. Marnie was the first one to give in to the temptation as her lips hesitantly captured his. There was a moment of uncertainty and shock that quickly morphed into one of longing and bliss as the kiss became more passionate.

They moved perfectly in sync with each other and all of their inhibitions melted away as the seconds pressed on.

The private moment they shared ended when Marnie's phone started ringing. Reluctantly, she broke the kiss and reached in her pocket, pulling out her phone and looking at it to see a private number flash across the screen

"Hello?" she answered and tried to steady her shaking voice. A smile was plastered on her face.

"Mawnie, I can't find mommy and daddy-"

"Alice? Where are you calling from? What do you mean you can't find them?" Her smile faded, and panic filled Marnie's heart, praying it was just another one of Alice's calls to get her to come over.

"Can you come and get me, Mawnie? They haven't bwung the caw around yet, but this silly clown guy offewed to stay with me till someone comes-"

Laughter could be heard from the other side of the line before a hoarse voice came, "Oh Mawnie, Mawnie, Mawnie it, uh, seems like you've gotten yourself in a pickle. You've been able to evade me for a while, but I'm afraid it seems like you'll have to come visit me now. And, ha ha, don't even think about calling the police this time, because the second I hear those sirens I won't hesitate to kill this cute, innocent kid. We'll see you soon on the second floor of the garage on riverside. Tootleloo!"

The line went dead, and Marnie's eyes grew wide with terror. All she could think of was her poor, naïve sister who still thought the world was a peaceful, happy place. Tears streamed down her face as she slowly rose back onto her feet and stormed over to her to the elegant oak table where she had placed her purse.

"What's going on?" Bruce asked, following closely behind her. His tone had changed into one of concern. He had been able to make out some words exchanged from the other line, but not enough to come to a conclusion.

She slung her bag across her body and spun around to face him. "He has Alice, Bruce. The Joker has Alice. I'm sorry to leave this early, but I have to save her- I can't lose her." She turned to run but was caught by the arm.

Fear struck his heart. He couldn't let her walk back into the Joker's grasp, especially when he had just rescued her. "You can't do this alone, Marnie. Call the police, they'll-"

"No! He said he'd kill her if they come," she screamed and tore her arm away from him. "I'm sorry, Bruce, but I have to go."

* * *

Marnie pulled up to the blocked off garage and brought the car to a halt. She took a deep breath to stifle her nerves and reached over to her glove box, pulling out the gun she had kept for emergencies.

The Joker stood in the center of the floor, just as he said, with his goons standing behind him. The blonde lady dressed as a jester held onto Alice's hand. Alice, who had been sucking on her thumb, looked up and saw Marnie walking up to them; she tried to rip her hand out of the woman's grasp and run over to Marnie, but found she couldn't.

"Hey lady, my sissy's hewe. I can go now!" she said to her and looked up at her with pleading eyes.

"Harley, bring Alice over here," the Joker demanded. Harley nodded, picked up Alice, and handed her over to him. He bounced Alice on his hip and smiled over at Marnie. "Now, I assume you want her back, hmm?"

She clenched her jaw and nodded. "Yeah. I'm here, now let her go," she demanded as her heartbeat echoed loudly in her ears. The Joker didn't budge one inch; instead, his Glasgow smile grew wider. "I'm serious! I've held up my end of the bargain, now it's your turn. Hand her over!"

Her entire body was shaking in terror, and it was painfully obvious to the Joker. He would make her squirm until she caved. "Marnie, Marnie, Marnie… Surely you didn't think it would be as simple as showing up, did you? No, no, no-"

Alice tugged on his shirt as she began, "Hey mista', that's my sissy! I can go now-" She let out a yelp of pain as the Joker's fist collided with her face.

Marnie pulled the gun out of her bag and pointed it at his head as she took the safety off. "Let her go, or I swear I won't hesitate to shoot."

The goons behind the Joker all pointed their guns at her as he held a knife to Alice's throat. "Hmm, it seems like you've got a little predicament on your hands. Now, you can go ahead and shoot me, but once you pull that trigger, my men and Harley won't hesitate to do the same, and I certainly won't hesitate to slit her throat right open. But if you just be the doll that you are and put that gun down and do whatever I say, she goes free."

The seconds seemed like hours as she stood there, frozen and unsure of what to do. "What do you want?" Her voice echoed against the cement walls.

"You're to work with me from now on-"

"That's absurd!"

He pushed the knife harder against her throat. "Uh, not from my point of view. The way I see it, everyone's trying to keep you from the person you're meant to be. You were perfectly happy before you were sent away, weren't you? But then dear old dad couldn't find the joy in seeing you happy, so he figured he'd send you away, ruining the world you were content with and turning you into the coward I see standing before me. I guess I should also mention the fact that by joining me, you'll actually be saving your loved ones' lives-"

Before he could finish the next sentence, a black figure immediately took out the Joker's men and knocked the Joker to the ground. The black figure then disappeared from sight into the shadows, stalking and waiting for his next move. Alice tumbled down after him but quickly recovered and made a dash for Marnie only to be stopped by Harley pinning her down with a gun pointed at Alice's head.

Without hesitation, Marnie began to sprint over to the pair but was held back by the shadowy figure that she now recognized as Batman.

The Joker burst out into a fit of laughter as he recovered back onto his feet. "Oh Batsy ol' pal, it's good to see you again. Did'ya miss me?"

"Let the girl go, Joker," the dark knight demanded, his raspy voice reverberated through the parking deck.

"Hmm, let me think," he tapped his index finger on his chin. "That would be a no, unless of course we trade. You see, that fine lady in your arms is belongs to me, and I want her back." He skipped over to Harley and kneeled down beside the kid. Marnie struggled against Batman to break free, but he had an iron grip around her waist.

The Joker took out a knife from his pocket and held it in front of Alice's face. "You see this, munchkin? If that mean old bat over there doesn't give Marnie back to me, I'll be carving you up like a turkey on Thanksgiving." Alice began to scream, and the Joker turned his attention back to Batman. "That'd be another death on your hands, just like Harvey and Rachel, and I guess all the other citizens I've killed."

"Please just let me go," Marnie begged Batman, her eyes pleading with his dark ones. "I can't let her die." His grip on her reluctantly loosened, and she immediately escaped and ran over to Alice. Before she reached her, she was pulled over and brought against the Joker's hip. He guided her over to the back of the van that had been parked behind them and shoved her in.

"Harley, be a doll and let Alice go," he ordered and hopped in behind Marnie. The Joker slammed the door shut behind him and the car screeched out of the deck.

**Alright, well that's where I'm going to leave it today! I hope you all enjoyed it! As always, please review! I love getting feedback and whatnot!**


	9. Chapter 9

The iconic purple jacket had been shed and strewn over the empty passenger seat, leaving the clown dressed in his custom green vest, purple hexagonal blouse, and his deep purple pants. Marnie had scrunched against the side of the van, in attempt to get as far away from the gasoline-scented man beside her.

Much to her surprise, the Joker remained where he was at instead of moving closer. However, his dark eyes watched her every move.

"So, Marnie, how are you?" the Joker asked. "It's been a while. You look good."

She eyed him curiously, looking for the hidden motive to his peaceful demeanor only to discover she couldn't find one. _Maybe he's trying to trick you… Or maybe he's still the same Jack you used to know… _Marnie finally met his expectant gaze before shrugging. "How do you think I'm doing, _Joker_?" she spat.

"I don't know, that's why I'm asking." He smiled innocently, feigning ignorance, which only proved to make Marnie's temper rise. She crossed her arms over her chest and huffed. _You should've just let Batman handle it…_

"I'm sensing some hostility," he sang as he put his feet on top of the driver's seat, causing the driver to move his head forward to avoid contact with them.

"No, not at all," Marnie sarcastically replied and gave him a look of boredom. She clenched her jaw slightly and sighed

"You know if you keep doing that, your eyes will get stuck in that position." The Joker's smile widened to reveal his yellowing teeth. Marnie could feel herself about to snap but was stopped by the Joker's next comment. "Look, about those past incidents we went through, I just want you to know that it was nothing personal. I just couldn't play favorites, doll. You know how that whole thing goes."

She shrugged and rolled her eyes again as she remembered the time their sides were reversed. "At least I never tried to kill you. I even helped you out."

* * *

_A crowd of students ranging from the insignificant freshman to the high and mighty seniors swarmed around something in the hallway. The crowd was blocking Marnie from getting to her locker._

"_God damn it!" she muttered under her breath and began to tap her foot on the floor. The students on the outer ring of the crowd glanced back at her in annoyance and then went back to watching the commotion. _

_With a grit of the teeth and a temper to back it up, Marnie pushed her way through the crowd until she finally reached the source of it all. A fight had broken out and, from the looks of it there was little chance of it ending soon._

_A bloodied up student was backed up against a row of lockers, trying to defend and support himself. His opponent was a much larger student who didn't appear to have a scratch on him. However, both were covered in blood, which ruined their pristine uniforms. Marnie rolled her eyes before intervening, despite the fact that she didn't care who was fighting whom. She just wanted to get to her locker and leave for the day._

"_Hey, hey, hey! Knock it off, Ray!" Marnie ordered as she blocked the punch being aimed at the unfamiliar student._

_Ray maneuvered around her and pulled back for another punch but was stopped by a heeled kick to the face. His hands immediately flew up to his face and felt the warm, wet blood soak his fingers. "God, Marnie! What the hell was that for?" Ray roared and help up his sleeve to his bloodied nose._

"_I told you to cut it out," she replied. "Quit beating up the kids who are smarter than you. If you're jealous then pick up a damn book or something. Besides, you're keeping me from getting to my locker."_

_Marnie shoved Ray out of the way and grabbed to unfamiliar student by the wrist. _

"_C'mon, kid," she said before yelling over her shoulder to the swarm of students, "On your way, there's nothing more to see."_

_The students all dispersed and went back to pack up for the day. Marnie pulled the boy over to the nearby girl's bathroom. She could sense him tense up, most likely due to the fact he was the lone boy in the bathroom. Several girls who had been doing their make-up gave the pair a strange look, which Marnie promptly returned with a glare that sent them scattering out of the bathroom._

_Marnie pulled several sheets of paper towels out of the dispenser and began to douse them in soap and water._

"_Thanks," the boy managed to say once the shock wore off. _

_The sound of his velvety voice caused her to look over at the tall boy beside her. Marnie noticed that some pieces of his dirty blonde hair were stuck to his face due to the blood._

"_Hmm? Oh yeah, whatever. No big deal." _

_Marnie finished soaping the last of the paper towels and turned to face him. "You're new here, aren't you?" She began to dab at the grazes on his face. He nodded and studied her every move, still on edge. "You got a name, kid?"_

_The boy nodded once more. "Jack Napier." He winced as the soap stung the tender cut._

"_Oh! You're that genius kid with the scholar- for Christ's sake, stop twitching! I won't get it in your eye if you just stand still!" Marnie sighed as she steadied his face with her free hand. Why was she even doing this? "So what'd you do to piss off Ray? Correct his grammar or something?"_

"_I beat his record in swimming…"_

_Marnie chuckled and finished cleaning up Jack's face. "So you're smarter and faster than him; that'd definitely do it."

* * *

_

"Master Wayne, I just found this in the room Miss Garcia was staying in. It might be of interest to you," Alfred piped in as he entered the batcave and interrupted Bruce's deep thoughts. For the past week since Marnie had disappeared, he completely immersed himself in research during the day and patrolling in the night. He was becoming desperate and had even resulted in interrogating criminals on the whereabouts of the Joker.

Bruce spun the chair around to face his faithful friend with a weary face. "Nothing's turning up, Alfred. It's like they've completely disappeared from Gotham. The Joker hasn't caused anything yet, and nobody's seen him." He sighed and rubbed his face in his hands in an attempt to wipe out the migraine that had reared its ugly head. "I should've never let her go, Alfred. I could've figured out a way to save them both…"

The butler sighed and walked over to the worn out man sitting in front of him. "Well, Sir, I haven't found any information on where she is, but I believe I may have found something that might tell us who the Joker was."

Bruce returned his gaze back to Alfred with a hopeful look in his eyes. Could this finally be the first actual information on the Joker that wasn't a dead end? He took the note from Alfred's outstretched hand and read it over as possibilities ran through his mind.

_'Hey doll, sorry to cut our little engagement short. We'll see each other soon though, I promise, and after all, I am a man of my word. Now, if I were you, I wouldn't do anything stupid. I like my property in one piece, and it would be a shame to toss it out prematurely. Besides, don't forget who helped you out all those years ago…'_

"So the Joker was someone who Marnie knew a while ago, more than likely when she was a criminal," Bruce deduced as he spun back around to his computer and began a search for police files on Marnie Garcia.

* * *

Marnie stared at the dark, dank basement around her. Her eyes had adjusted to the shadowy area surrounding her, so she could make out the shapes of boxes and a table that currently occupied the room.

By now she had lost all track of time. Nobody had ventured over, and there were no clues as to what time of day it was. No windows graced the walls, and the only door wasn't visible from her current position. Her bones ached from the lack of movement. She was itching to move, but she couldn't bring herself to due to the fear of everything falling apart. Peace. Life. Her own sanity.

Sure, she had been stuck in there for lord knows how long, but at least she hadn't dealt with the Joker since he had locked her in the room. Avoidance was key if she wanted to remain relatively unscathed. She regretted even giving in. Marnie couldn't help but think of her family- Bruce.

Especially Bruce. He had done so much to help her out, and how does she repay him? By joining the Joker.

"God, I'm such and idiot!" Marnie muttered to herself as she hit her head against the concrete wall behind her. What did the Joker even want with her. She was completely useless at this point.

Marnie sat in the corner of the basement with her legs held tightly to her chest. Confusion clouded her thoughts as she tried to figure out what the Joker was up to. He hadn't laid one hand on her, and she hadn't even seen him since she was thrown into the basement. The sounds of footsteps echoed from above, causing Marnie's heart rate to rapidly increase.

The lights above flickered on and revealed a perky Harley skipping over to Marnie's side. Relief washed through her body, but she still kept her guard up.

"Hey, honey, how 'ya feelin'?" Harley asked as she took a seat beside Marnie and set down the two plates of food. Harley sighed, annoyed that she couldn't get a single word out of her. "I won't hurt ya, you know. We girls have got to stick together here." Marnie looked back over at Harley, who stared back at her with pleading eyes that almost resembled a puppy and took a bite out of an apple.

_Don't you say a word to her! She can't be trusted, she works for the Joker for God's sake-'_"How do you still work with him?" Her voice sounded foreign as the words left her mouth before even registering in her mind.

Harley's smile grew even wider at the question and simply answered, "'Cause I love my Puddin', and he loves me and as soon as that mean old bat is outta' the picture, we're gonna get married!"

Marnie stared at her in disbelief. Was she hearing this woman correctly? Harley hummed to herself as she bandaged up the rest of the injuries on Marnie's body. "You've got to be kidding me... Look, I don't know if you've realized this yet, but that- that man is a psychopathic maniac. There are a lot of guys out there who are so much better than him."

Harley regarded her, a smile still spread across her face. "Mista' J is the only man for me. You don't know him like I do."

**Hey all! Sorry this took a while to get posted and that it's a tad shorter than the others. It's been super busy and crazy lately with the end of the semester, but finals are over and I'm back. Thank you to everyone who reviewed and/or story alerted this story; it means a lot to me. Also thank you to my awesome beta reader forever is never forever! As always, please review and whatnot! It would make me a happy camper :)  
**


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